A Complete Guide To Colouring Your Hair In 2019

Text by Sadaf Shaikh

Last week, the collective internet was fawning over Lady Gaga’s icy blue bun that matched her periwinkle gown so we took some time out to forecast hair colour trends for the year. Adhuna Bhabani, Founder and Creative Director of BBlunt quips in, providing tips on how to care for coloured tresses….

Started from the bottom

Perhaps the safest option for those looking to pimp their tresses, colouring the bottom half of your hair comes with one big advantage — you can just cut it off when the colour begins to run out or the ends turn dry. It also means that you don’t have to be too concerned about the ensemble you pair it with because you still have the top half of your hair playing it safe on your behalf. A great way to go all out with this hair colouring technique is to opt for a dip-dye job like Rita Ora which starts as a blue-green shade that gives way to a bright fuchsia tone.

Adhuna speaks: It’s not necessary to wait for the coloured hair to grow out completely before trying out a new colour but you would need to consider the existing shade versus the new one and discern if it is achievable or not. Sometimes, if you want to change your colour completely, it can take a series of steps to get from A to B. It may not necessarily happen in one sitting as colour correction is a lengthy process and should be done in consultation with your salon stylist.

Celeb colour crush

How many times have you seen Kylie Jenner’s hair transform over the years and wished you could get that exact shade of violet, teal or rose gold? While the younger Jenner owns a whole bunch of wigs in vivid hues that allow her to indulge her colour whims whenever she wishes to, the rest of us have to opt for more permanent and conventional methods of fashioning our hair after our favourite celebrities. Take Tilda Swinton, Lady Gaga and Sandy Powell for example — all of whom were inspired by the enigmatic David Bowie, more specifically his alter ego Ziggy Stardust in the song Life on Mars. Colouring their locks that exact shade of fiery red in addition to channelling major androgynous vibes in electric blue pantsuits allowed them to really take the look from mere inspiration to the next level. Don’t miss Lady Gaga’s eclectic blue eyeshadow that actually made us wonder if Bowie had travelled through space and time to take us back to the glory days of Ziggy Stardust.

Adhuna speaks: Hair colour usually tends to reflect a personal state of mind. When picking a shade, it’s important to keep in mind your skin tone, eye colour as well as the colour of the ensemble, in case you’re doing it for a certain occasion. Depending on what you prefer, you can pick from a variety of natural tones like chocolate, honey and caramel or vibrant reds like mahogany and burgundy. For a first timer, I would recommend keeping the tones simple, something that is close to your natural hair colour. For global colour, prioritise on retaining the shine, even if you’re doing the procedure at home. Remember to always conduct a patch test prior to colouring.

Life in technicolour

This one requires you to commit as if your life depends on it because it can get tricky to pull off hair that is coloured in multiple shades, especially when you have to do it for months. When Kesha turned up in this two-toned pastel hair job that was a pale pink on one side and a washed out turquoise on the other, we lauded her experimental chops. But consider this, what would happen if the singer had to exchange her chic one-shoulder dress for something regular like a polka-dotted shirt like a regular person would wear to work? Would she look just as cool or would she seem like a mermaid who had just been banished from the Kingdom of Atlantis? The key word here is confidence and a certain don’t-give-a-damn attitude and judging from the image above, Cardi B certainly seems to have received the memo when she coloured her hair in all the colours of the rainbow.

Adhuna speaks: I think pastel shades like candy pink, silver grey and ultraviolet will continue to be a hit with those wanting to make a statement. With the influence of the ’80s fashion in 2019, there’s going to be a lot more pop colours like tangerine and acid yellow making a comeback too. For your colour to last longer, be sure to maintain the vibrancy by using a shampoo and conditioner combination with colour protect properties. Also, ensure that you coat your hair with a versatile leave-in cream that is also enriched with SPF properties as it protects your colour from fading and your hair from the harsh sun.

Bleach, please!

Bravehearts, come forth. The decision to go for a full hair bleach is never an easy one to make since you cannot simply chop off your locks and expect to get rid of the colour; your hair also has to endure the harsh after-effects of multiple layers of bleach for a long time. Thankfully, salons now provide after-colour services that infuse proteins to purge your hair of any limpness besides fortifying your hair with Olaplex treatments that limit the damage before the hair is coloured. Last April, Lisa Haydon exchanged her dark brown tresses for platinum locks and there was a collective (appreciative) gasp from her Instagram followers when she unveiled her new mane on the social media platform. If you’re considering something similar, we’d recommend taking the plunge.

Adhuna speaks: If you are opting to bleach your hair in order to block out the greys completely, it’s best to choose a base shade and maybe add in some highlights for extra depth and definition. If the coverage of white hair is not a priority, it is better to play around with techniques that are more freehand with a slightly grown-out, irregular vibe which camouflages the grey but doesn’t totally block it out. This also means that you don’t have to touch up your hair as frequently. I recommend re-colours every 4-6 weeks, depending on the type of colouring technique you’re using for your hair. If the technique is a global colour, then four weeks is usually an appropriate duration. If it’s more of a highlighted technique, you can stretch it up to 2-3 months.

Match point

How much matching is too much matching? If Lady Gaga’s recent outing at the Golden Globes and Georgia May Jagger’s vibrant pink hair at the British Fashion Awards last month is anything to go by, the sky’s the limit. Commitment-phobes could even opt for a temporary colour job for occasions where they are feeling rather adventurous with various brands like Manic Panic (Semi-Permanent Hair Color Cream) or BBlunt (One Night Stand Temporary Hair Colour) offering options where you can wash the colour off the next day. This not only means that you can experiment with various colour combinations every now and then but also infers that you don’t have to live with impulsive decisions for a long time. On the other hand, if you pride yourself on being a risk-taker like Rita Ora and don’t really care for ephemeral fads, you can just go ahead and colour your hair that gorgeous shade of blue permanently.

Adhuna speaks: When your hair has been overloaded with colour, it is quite normal for your bathroom to look like a crime scene, especially when the colours belong to the red family. Essentially, when you shampoo the colour out of your hair after application, you need to keep rinsing your hair until the water runs clear. Usually, with any colour and particularly with the more vibrant shades, it’s completely normal for a little bit of colour to run out for the first 2-3 washes. Using a hydrating shampoo and conditioner combination with colour protect properties will allow your hair to retain its softness.

Lights, camera, action!

When Amber Heard made her debut as Lady Mera in Aquaman last month it was her glowing red mane that really stole the show. Coloured hair has a certain significance in pop culture and movies; think about how Kate Winslet’s ever-changing hues in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind was meant to mirror her own state of mind. Her character Clementine sports green hair — the colour of life and renewal — at the beginning of the movie when she first meets Jim Carrey’s character Joel, which then changes into a fiery red before their first date, transitioning into an orange that is meant to indicate that the passion has died down and finally settling for blue when she impulsively decides to have Joel erased from her mind. Katrina Kaif also coloured her hair a deep shade of red — meant to symbolise the falling leaves during autumn — for Fitoor, which was based on Charles Dickens’ novel Great Expectations.

Adhuna speaks: For those who like to wear their hair dressed up or often find themselves gravitating towards elaborate styling techniques, colours are the way to go as they accentuate waves and curls and also give an illusion of added volume to the hair. You can opt for a Balayage or ombré if you prefer to flaunt the darkness of your natural hair colour at the top. Semi blondes are for those who want a bolder look and dare to go a few shades brighter than their natural hair colour. Face contouring is like makeup for the hair; it helps to highlight or camouflage certain facial features.

Take a ‘short’ at it

This is perhaps the toughest look to pull off, which would explain why the accompanying images feature women like Amber Rose, Gwen Stefani and Rihanna, who are certified badasses. While a fair amount of women are afraid to go under the scissors, chopping off a large section of your hair is known to be liberating. Of course, the aforementioned women took it to the next level by painting their barely-there locks in eccentric colours like Kelly Osbourne colouring her mohawk lavender and Willow Smith colouring her buzz a lush green. Besides being extremely low maintenance, this look could also earn you some extra street cred and you won’t even have to worry much about the kind of clothes you should pair it with. After all, does anything not look good on fierce women?

Adhuna speaks: I always suggest prevention rather than cure. So whether you colour your hair often, opt for heat styling procedures frequently or subject your hair to chemical treatments, it is important to prepare your hair with a range of products developed to tackle any resulting damage. I swear by a special concoction of keratin and argan oil which is the ideal fix for dry and damaged hair. Apart from reversing a fair amount of damage done through artificial chemical treatments and dyes, the argan oil in the products also treats split ends.

Scroll on to see our pick of products that keep after-colour damage at bay and ensure your hues really shine through…

TIGI Bed Head Color Goddess oil-infused shampoo and conditioner for coloured hair set

Sebastian Professional Color Ignite multi-tone shampoo and conditioner set